Director Bio Sketch
Dr. Brett A. Dolezal
Dr. Brett A. Dolezal received his Ph.D. in Exercise Physiology from the University of Kansas in 1998. His first academic job was as an Associate Professor in the Kinesiology Department at North Dakota State University for three years; during his brief three year tenure there he developed and taught new undergraduate and graduate courses and also founded the Center for Resistance Training Research.
In 2001, Dr. Dolezal ventured west to Southern California to focus his energies away from academia and into the private sector with the founding of his personal training and fitness consulting company, The Fitness Prof. The shift from research to real-world application enabled Dr. Dolezal to leverage his extensive academic background of fitness in a successful business for seven years. He was recognized by fitness industry leaders as an authority in personal training and the application of empirical-based fitness. Dr. Dolezal reentered academe in 2008 and is now an Associate Professor of Medicine and Exercise Physiology at the UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine and Founder and Director of the UC Fit Digital Health-Exercise Physiology Research Laboratory.
Further, Dr. Dolezal instructs undergraduate lab interns and first year medical and dental student-centric labs, structured in problem-based groups so that the content and skills to be learned are organized around problems, rather than as a hierarchal list of topics. The UC Fit lab promotes a prevention model of wellness, focused on forestalling disease progression through the enhancement of health and fitness practices.
Recently, the lab has been distinguished as part of the Exercise is Medicine® on-campus recognition program through the American College of Sports Medicine, together our vision is to create a campus culture that embraces physical activity and exercise as a daily facet of life and views it as essential for long-term health and wellness. Notable among the myriad of research topics conducted is our study and utilization of cutting-edge wearable fitness technologies and exergaming utilizing immersive virtual reality that aim to improve the health and performance in those inflicted with a disease, fitness enthusiasts and athletes alike.